Many parents start to panic when a child has a fever. All methods are used to alleviate the condition of the baby, antipyretic drugs are immediately used, although there may not be any need for medications. In any case, you first need to calm down (parental anxiety is easily transmitted to the child, which only worsens his well-being in case of illness), and only then carefully look at the baby’s behavior and indicators on the thermometer.
Fever in a child
High fever is not a specific symptom. This is a reaction of the body that can be caused by a seasonal cold, teething in a baby, a serious illness, and so on. To find out the reasons for the temperature increase, a pediatrician examination is necessary, and in some cases it is advisable to assign tests that will make it possible to correctly diagnose.
The thermoregulation center is responsible for increasing the indicators on the thermometer. This is a protective reaction in which the body's immune response is activated, that is, the production of antibodies is stimulated, phagocytosis intensifies, and the synthesis of interferons is activated. An increase in body temperature stops the development of microorganisms, bacteria and viruses.
An increase in temperature is fairly easy to determine. The child becomes less active, sleepy, lethargic, does not run and does not play, asks for arms. Forehead, arms and body become hot. Single vomiting may occur. Sometimes febrile seizures appear. Children who have previously had cramps at a temperature should be treated carefully. Antipyretics should be given to such children even at a low temperature (about 37.5 degrees).
Temperature: first aid
What to give the child at a temperature? First you need to identify the causes of the deterioration. If the temperature does not exceed 38 degrees, and the child tolerates it normally, then there is no need for antipyretics. In this case, the body is fighting infection, therefore, without the need to bring down the temperature should not be. The exception is cases when a child suffers from neurological diseases or simply suffers severe temperature. In such cases, it is necessary to give antipyretics already from 37.5 degrees.
At what temperature should a child be given medicine? At temperatures above thirty-eight degrees, you need to give the baby an antipyretic, which was recommended by the doctor. For very young children, it is better to give medicines in liquid form (syrup or solution). Be sure to call a doctor to determine the causes of fever. The symptom is usually accompanied by a runny nose, cough, pain in the head or abdomen, rash, and vomiting. This will allow not only to stop the symptom itself, but also to cure the underlying disease that provoked it.
What to do with cramps
What to give the child at a temperature if convulsions begin? Be sure to call an ambulance. Convulsions are not caused by heat in itself, but by a sharp increase in indicators. This condition is relatively rare (found in 4% of children), but causes irresistible fear in parents. Measures to prevent febrile seizures are usually taken too late when the seizure threshold is already passed. Children under five are prone to this symptom.
First aid for cramps is as follows. It is necessary to turn the child on his side so that he does not choke on saliva. There should be no sharp or hard objects near the head that could injure yourself during the attack. Between the teeth of the child you need to place a clean and durable, but not sharp object. A leather glove or wallet will do, but not a finger. This is necessary so that during the attack the baby does not bite his tongue. Cramps last a few minutes. After that, you can not give food and drink to the child for another hour, because he can choke due to severe drowsiness.
White fever
This dangerous condition is characterized by an increase in temperature at which the baby's skin remains cold and pale (usually at high rates on a thermometer, the skin turns pink or turns red in some places). In this case, the lips and mucous membranes acquire a bluish tint, after pressing on the skin, a white spot does not come off for a long time. Parents' reviews confirm that this indicates serious health problems. Help should be provided immediately. The child becomes apathetic, moody, may refuse food. In severe cases, convulsions begin, accompanied by delirium. Antipyretics with this clinical picture do not give a result, and antihistamines are generally prohibited.
With white fever, you need to urgently consult a doctor. A child can be given a half of the No-Shpy tablet. It should be intensively rub the limbs of the child. Antipyretic drugs will not begin to act until the spasm passes. It is necessary to exclude rubbing and wrapping in wet diapers, so as not to increase the spasm of the skin. Any methods of physical cooling are contraindicated.
Infant temperature
Particularly dangerous is the high temperature in a very young child who cannot complain of a deterioration in well-being. Indicators of 37-37.5 degrees are considered normal temperature in a newborn. For any symptom that worries parents, you should immediately contact a pediatrician. Call an ambulance if the temperature in the armpit reaches 39 degrees.
Parents must provide the child with a comfortable environment before the doctor arrives. It is necessary to ventilate the room, the air temperature should be approximately twenty degrees. You can use an air conditioner or a fan, but the air stream should not fall on the child. The kid needs to be opened. It is better to remove the diaper because it can cover up to 30% of the body surface. This, of course, interferes with normal heat transfer.
Caring for a child with fever
You need to feed a sick child with food that is well absorbed. Temporarily exclude canned, fatty and sweet foods, as well as meat (especially fried). You need to often drink the baby. This way, toxins formed during the penetration of the body by viruses are eliminated more quickly. It is better to give warm tea with lemon and honey, milk with honey, fruit teas, homemade compotes, fruit drinks, juices with vitamin C. Broths of herbs and mineral water are suitable.
The room where the child is located should be regularly ventilated, if necessary, moisten the air. For this purpose, you can put a three-liter jar of water or hang a wet diaper, a towel (if there is no special device). The temperature in the room should not be higher than 22 degrees Celsius.
How to dress a child at temperature
In no case should you wrap a sick child. This can cause heat stroke if the performance rises significantly. The child should be dressed lightly. You can cover it with a diaper or a light blanket so that excess heat easily leaves. No need to rub the baby with alcohol, vinegar or apply cold heating pads. Alcohol is well absorbed, it can cause poisoning of the body. If the fever lasts three to four days after consulting a pediatrician, you need to call a doctor again to adjust treatment.
Antipyretic drugs
All drugs are calculated according to the weight of the child, so it happens that neither Paracetamol nor Ibuprofen help. In such cases, the dose is usually simply incorrectly calculated. Manufacturers underestimate the dose just in case. Focusing on the recommendation “from six months to three years” is not entirely reasonable, because the same dose of the drug cannot be suitable for a child weighing from eight kilograms to eighteen.
How to calculate the dose of medicine
Is it possible to give medicines to a child at temperature, in which cases? At a temperature of 38.5 degrees and above, urgently need to give medications to all children, from 38 degrees antipyretic should be given to the child in the first three months of life. You need to give medicine at a temperature above 37.5 degrees to those children who have had cramps in the past.
What can a child be given from temperature? The main drugs of choice are Paracetamol and Ibuprofen. The rest are analogues with the same active components. A single dose of Paracetamol (Panadol, Cefecon D) is 15 mg per kg of body weight. So, for a child weighing ten kilograms, a single dosage will be 150 mg. For a child weighing 15 kg, the dose will be 225 mg. You can give the child at a temperature of "Paracetamol" in syrup no more than four times a day if necessary. In the form of candles, you can use up to two times a day. The recommended interval between doses is six hours.
At what temperature can Ibuprofen be given to a child? At 38 degrees and above, if the baby is extremely poorly tolerated by temperature. If there are no concomitant symptoms, and the child is quite active, does not complain about well-being, then you can not give medicine to a temperature of 38.5 degrees Celsius. A single dose of Ibuprofen is 10 mg per kilogram of weight. That is, for 8 kg of a child’s weight, 80 mg should be given. As much as possible you can use the drug three times a day.
How to give Nurofen to children at a temperature? This is an analogue of Ibuprofen. A single dose is a maximum of 10 mg per kilogram of weight. For children aged 3-6 months, the official instruction recommends giving 2.5-3 ml three times a day (but not more than 150 mg per day). You can give your child "Nurofen" at a temperature regardless of food intake, because it is a symptomatic medicine. Use the medicine for no more than three days as an antipyretic and no more than five days as an anesthetic. You can give your child "Nurofen" at a temperature of no more than once every eight hours. By the way, judging by the reviews, it is Nurofen that is the most popular medicine among parents that helps to quickly and effectively cope with fever. Individual parents respond to convenient syringes that allow you to give the right dose of medication.
Antipyretic drugs reduce the temperature within one and a half hours by about one and a half degrees. Expect a decrease to normal (36.6 degrees) should not be. There is no need to give more medicine if the indicators have decreased to elevated, but not critical.
What drugs can not be a child
What to give a child at a temperature is strictly prohibited? "Aspirin" is banned until 15 years. Taking this medicine at an early age can cause damage to the liver and brain. The use of Analgin is not approved. This medicine is toxic, depressing effect on blood formation. Not recommended Nise, Nimesulide Nimulide. The use of these drugs in childhood threatens the development of severe damage to internal organs (namely toxic hepatitis).
Do not do vinegar or alcohol wipes, because the skin easily absorbs the applied substances. Rubdowns can cause serious intoxication of the child's body. Do not dip your child in a bathtub with cold water. Cooling the skin can lead to vasospasm and decreased heat transfer.
What form of medicine to choose
What to give the child at a temperature - pills, syrup, candles? It must be borne in mind that drugs in the form of a solution or syrup begin to act already twenty or thirty minutes after ingestion, and in candles - thirty to forty-five minutes. At the same time, the effect of candles is longer. This is confirmed by the reviews of parents.
Judging by the reviews of parents, candles help out in cases where the child refuses to drink the medicine or he has vomiting. It is better to use this form of drugs after bowel movements. It is convenient to introduce candles at night. You can give pills for the temperature of the child, but this form of antipyretic is rarely used. The tablets are not very convenient to use.